Drug Trafficking Ring Operating Out of Arizona Busted

A large narcotics ring based near the Arizona/Mexico border has been busted by U.S. authorities. The ring, identified by authorities as the Navarro Drug Trafficking Organization, was based in a small town on the notorious Peck Canyon Corridor where Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was killed.

The narcotics were then shipped from that location throughout the United States, specifically to the Northeast U.S. and our nation’s capital.

Luis Alberto Navarro, who was born in Mexico, was sentenced to 360 months in U.S. prison for his role in leading the cocaine distribution conspiracy and the Navarro Drug Trafficking organization. His Rio Rico, Arizona operation distributed cocaine to Virginia, New York, Pennsylvania, Indiana, and other locations. The indictment reveals that empty fire extinguishers and cooler liners were used to transport the cocaine across the U.S., while all profits returned to the Rio Rico point-of-origin. The organization was held responsible for transporting 160 kilograms of cocaine since 2006.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office stopped short of acknowledging where the organization’s cocaine came from, as is customary for U.S. authorities to do. However, the Rio Rico location is a nine-minute drive from the U.S./Mexico border and the town sits at the head of Peck Canyon, an area notorious for Mexican cartel narcotics smuggling. The local Tucson Weekly called the area a “smugglers’ paradise.”

Concern among Americans is growing because of the recent rise in violence within the U.S. committed by the cartels over the cartels’ drugs. The revelations about the Navarro Drug Trafficking organization can possibly shed some light on how the shadowy enterprises operate.